The ending of Succession left a hole in our hearts the size of Waster Loiko. As the various Roys scatter and lick their wounds, the fans who remain are subject to regular sour insults, soapy vulgarity, and occasional glimpses of privileged roots in human frailty and warmth. Where to turn to misery? I have some ideas.
The pound-for-pound exchange of past classics like “Mad Men,” “Americans,” and “The Shield” is obvious. Each has its own thematic resonance with “inheritance”. It is the shifting emptiness of business. Alienation, believing that there are actually many things more important than family. The essence of love that sprouts from everyday cruelty. But that’s not the only worthwhile follow-up. There are a few more things to consider.
I want something similar, but more silly.
“Jewel of Justice”
where to see:Max
The televangelist families, the Roy and Gemstone families, are flipped versions of each other. A bombastic, whimsical but wildly successful father rules an empire whose desperate and licentious children inherit it unless they all kill each other first. . Arguments and jokes abound due to the mutually understood but ostensibly denied reality that no one in Gen 2 can really do the job. They all make up for it with glorious, vulgar insults. Her daughter is married to a clumsy man and she gleefully bullies him. The second son sublimates his sexuality. The eldest son’s ego could pull the earth off its axis.
In “Succession,” the stakes are serious, but the characters approach it with a frivolous attitude. In “Gemstones,” the situation is absurd, but the characters take it incredibly seriously. These shows share an understanding of the corrupting power of wealth and a belief that there is no greater feat than being on stage and singing. (“It is bad manners” feet up “L to OG” If “Success” is an ice bath, “The Righteous Gemstones” is a slide, but the water comes from the same source.
My favorite character is Kendall.
“Bojack Horseman”
Where to watch: Netflix.
BoJack, like Kendall, is a character with a history of serious substance abuse whose carelessness leads to the deaths of people and who can never make up for his parents’ lack of love. He’s mean and very funny, and disgusting and vulnerable, and can deliver a searing, uplifting eulogy. They each have their own Gatsby-like moments in the pool, long memories, and deep pockets. Heck, Kendall even said he’s thinking about “picking up the ‘BoJack’ people” in order to write the tweet.
‘BoJack’ and ‘Succession’ share a thrilling attention to detail. The production design is all about relentlessly pausing and taking screenshots, with a special knack for the bottom ticker of insane cable news shows. (“Speak English!” Patriot shouts with soy milk.) “Succession” features Vantaa as a watchman. “Bojack” features Girl Kluche as Buzzfeed.
My favorite characters are Greg and Tom.
‘peep show’
Where to watch: Roku Channel, Pluto TV.
Before Jesse Armstrong made ‘Succession’ and before he made the fantastic political comedy ‘The Sick of It’, David Mitchell and Robert Webb played Mark and Jez in this twisted buddy I co-produced a comedy. The two stupid roommates are probably your nasty brothers. .
“Peep Show” is filmed primarily POV style, reveling in all the awkward and crude intimacy within your own thoughts. Like Tom and Greg, Mark and Jez often plot, but rarely act accurately in practice. When their plans come to fruition, it’s usually a Monkey’s Paw scenario or some strange coincidence, like a small boat floating on a vast ocean that occasionally washed up on shore.
I want more Sarah Snook.
“Beautiful Lies”
Where to watch: Acorn TV.
This six-part Australian miniseries is a modern adaptation of ‘Anna Karenina’, starring Sarah Snook as the ill-fated protagonist. Snook as Shiv is all quivering and self-contained, but her performance as Anna is grander, broader and far more open. This Anna is as reckless as Shiv never was. There is also something warm and genuine about her Anna’s smile. The show itself is soapy in a good way, full of beachy etch and rage fighting.
I want more Matthew Macfadyen.
‘quiz’
Where to watch: AMC+.
Macfadyen offers another version of the stupid husband in this fantastic three-part British documentary mini-series about the making of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? And the cheating scandal it sparked.
Charles Ingram (Macfadyen) is an Army Major and his wife Diana (Sian Clifford) is a trivia junkie who persuades him to join the £1million ‘millionaire’. But something seems wrong — does that guy really know those answers? Or was he coughed up and tipped off by a co-conspirator in the audience? The show itself is tight and meandering, which is further proof that Macfadyen knows all too well “Wait…is this guy dumber than he looks or smarter than he looks?”
I want something that’s equally cynical and media-focused, but with a different vibe.
“I hate Susie”
Where to watch: maximum.
Co-created by “Succession” writer Lucy Preble, “Susie” follows a former child star-turned-B-list actress (played by the show’s other creator, Billie Piper) who shares her intimate relationship. Her life is ruined when her photo leaked to the tabloids. In Season 2, she appears in the Dance Her Contest Her series and climbs into the public good, but it comes at a spiritual cost.
Both shows love to play out what viewers “expect” to happen, and their disciplined refusal to bow to the familiar contours of happy endings and salvation makes the show richer and more difficult. I am making things. Mr. and Mrs. Roy and Susie read their newspapers a lot and often had trouble seeing themselves anywhere but in reflection.
No, it’s similar, but sadder.
“Stysel”
Where to watch: It’s nowhere right now, but I hope that changes.
Set in a modern day ultra-Orthodox family, this Israeli drama isn’t currently streaming, but it’s sure to return in the not too distant future. Also, there is no way to create a “successor” adjacency list and not include it. The shows are very similar.
Much like the Roy family, the Štissel children do not see their father as a father, but as a hot-tempered god. Their successes and failures are never their own. If “Gemstones” is the sillier version, “Shtisel” is more serious, steeped in more moments of sadness and magical thought. And just as the Roy family says “yeah” when they mean “no,” in “Stissel” few people say what they mean.
But the real fun of bringing up ‘stissel’ and ‘succession’ in conversation comes from their different approaches to desire, embodied in different depictions of food: cooking, eating, hunger itself. increase. In ‘Stissel’, it’s not fancy, but the food is ubiquitous. It’s an egg omelet and one, a poorly sliced tomato, and a two-liter soda indignantly placed on the table. In “Succession,” visible lust is a sin, and only the most vile characters eat. The only acceptable form of passion is anger. There is plenty of anger in “Stisel”, but lust and ambition are allowed, love exists, and religious zeal is a virtue.
